CLO to probe 20 employees who tested positive for illegal drugs use

Cebu City Hall employees who tested positive for illegal drugs use will now be the subject of an investigation by the City Legal Office. | Photo Courtesy of Jonah John Rodriguez, head of COSAP

CEBU CITY, Philippines — At least 20 employees of the Cebu City government will undergo investigation to especially determine why they tested positive for illegal drugs use during a recent testing initiated by the City Office for Substance Abuse Prevention (COSAP).

Lawyer Rey Gealon, head of the City Legal Office (CLO), said that their investigation will also determine if there was a need to order the immediate termination of these employees.

“Legal officers will be assigned to investigate these employees in compliance with due process. Termination from employment awaits those who will either not submit themselves to the investigation called for or (those) who will fail to present controverting evidence,” said Gealon.

The 20 employees who failed the drug testing held during the first week of November are assigned in Barangay Lusaran, the Parks and Playgrounds Commission, and the Civil Registrar’s Office.

“CLO has just received the COSAP report with the names of those City Hall employees who tested positive for  (use of) methylamphetamine hydrochloride. Upon the directive of the Mayor, we shall commence our investigation,” Gealon said in a text message which he sent to CDN Digital this morning, November 16, 2019.

Mayor Edgard Labella said in an earlier interview that City Hall employees who test positive for illegal drugs use will be accorded due process.  But he warned them of suspension and even dismissal from service if proven that they indeed used illegal drugs.

As a policy, contracts of job order (JOs) employees will no longer be renewed while casual employees will be ordered terminated from service. Regular employees, on the other hand, risk losing their work tenure and may end up becoming casual employees of the Cebu City government. / dcb